Learning @ GW – Page 12 – Postcards from GW

Pre-Exchange – Hi!

AdminAugust 18, 2016

I remember the excitement of receiving the email from GWU informing that I was chosen as a recipient for the Inbound Exchange Blogging & Digital Storytelling Scholarship, I was in Beijing at the time attending my first exchange experience for a short winter course at Peking University. Straight after this first leg of exchange, I had planned to arrive in America three weeks before orientation week to go on a road trip in America and Canada before finally going to Washington DC for a semester exchange at GWU. This exchange will undoubtedly be an experience of a lifetime and I am so glad I get to document and share it through blogging and a final video!

I am typing my first ever blog article in Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada. My name is Maggie and for the past 13 days I have been on the road with my mum traveling the west coast of America. Starting in Los Angeles, we rented a campervan and have driven to Las Vegas, The Grand Canyon (North and South Rim), Page (for the famous Horseshoe Bend Canyon), through the Death Valley into Yosemite National Park and finally arrived at San Francisco (totally 2200 miles!) before taking a plane to Vancouver. I was absolutely blown away by the shear beauty of nature which was not the first thing I had associated America with. In about 7 days I return once again to civilization, this time in Wasgington D.C. and I am looking forward to the many adventures to come. I have been lucky to get a 3-day timetable, with classes from Tuesday to Thursday, which means I get a four-day weekend to explore D.C. and maybe even up and down the East Coast!

Besides all the travelling, I am also looking forward for the courses I am about to undertake at GWU. I am currently an undergraduate student studying a bachelor of civil engineering and commerce (majoring in accounting and finance) at the University of New South Wales. We are usually given a maximum of two semesters to spend studying abroad with exchange partners all over the world. It has been a dream of mine to study in America and I'm not even sure why that is the case myself. Perhaps in comparison to Australia, there is just so much more to do and explore in America. Even though Australia is approximately the same size as America, we have a much smaller population and utilization of land (it's all desert in the middle). Due to the flexibility in the commerce side of my degree, I will be studying a combination of accounting, finance and management courses at GWU. In particular, I am most excited about Real Estate Investment and E-Entrepreneurship, both of which I would not have been able to take back at my home university. I am also keen to participate in the many clubs that GWU has to offer, especially ones related to outdoor/adventure activities and sports.

It will also be the first time living away from home since in Australia there is no "college" culture (a lot of students live at home and travel to university). To save on some accommodation costs (I didn't realise the costs were so high to live in D.C.), I decided to live off-campus in a student accommodation that GWU has linked on their website. It's a few minutes walk from the metro station and then maybe a 20 minute ride to university which isn't too bad. I think the reality of living away from home will only hit once I get there and I will realise the many things I take for granted such as not having to cook or clean most of the time around the house.

My exchange experience at GWU will give an insight in America's culture and way of life, which will be invaluable in becoming a global citizen in this world. Studying in the nation's capital during election year will also give insight into American politics that is so engrained in this country. GWU, I can't wait to see you soon!

Greetings from Turkey

AdminAugust 15, 2016

Excitement that can be only word describing the feeling I have right now, before attending George Washington University family.

Hello everybody, My name is Emre Ceyhun, student from Bogaziçi University, Istanbul. As an undergraduate, I began volunteering at two non-profit, service organizations. I did not imagine that these experiences could significantly shape my career plans, as I was already set on a career focus in public policy rather than politics. However, after two years of service to the underprivileged –both Syrian refugees and Roman communities in Turkey—I can clearly see that this is, by far, the greatest experience I have ever had. It has taught me the greatest reward of selfless service: to be able to touch and improve another’s life beyond his or her own capacity, and in turn have one’s own soul fed through validating smiles and warmth. In alignment with my volunteer experience, I chose to shift my career path toward conflict solution and negotiations between political bodies in order to touch and improve societies in the most direct way.

Choosing my school, I consider of having to choose the most valuable school, provides me with lots of opportunities, in terms of the courses helping me clarify my view and add American point of view to it, and the social clubs in which I can communicate and build networks with people who want to have the same career path with me. After my research, it is clear that the right choice for me is GWU because beside the easy application steps and helping exchange staff it also provides a great deal of opportunities at the heart of the USA, in Washington DC. So far, I communicated with No-Lost Generation when some representatives attend to World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, a student club aiming at being beneficial ( instead of helping because help includes the status in it and impose the fact that while one helping is superior, the other helped is inferior . At that student club, I find the right implementation of this thought, which makes me happy because it shows that we are at the same tone.) to Syrian children education which is the target group with which I have been studying for 2 years. Also, the professors of my courses such as Ethnic Conflict and Peacebuilding or Work, Poverty and Public Policy will help me to discern the structure of society in academic manner and add more on my career plans.
Having seen those opportunities provided by GWU creates nothing but excitement about the life in Washington DC and in GWU, as one clearly can see. I know the experience of being alone and of the family that I am about to attend will mature my thoughts on my future plans and the way I look to the life. I hope to come back to my home university with the culture of GWU and projects I aim to progress in Turkey with the help of the maturing process in DC.

The Cree Triumph

AdminApril 12, 2016

By jarrodgrabham12

At Rupert’s, Montreal, I came in contact with a North American First Nation's person for the first time. It was a wonderful experience. The night had started rather normally. Fellow exchange student Louise Bicknese (The Netherlands) and I were enjoying our first poutine, a typical French Canadian dish consisting of French fries, cheese, gravy and shaved meat. It is the kind of food you avoid if your dieting. Big time. One bowl of that deliciously deadly consistency and you could knock 6 months off your life. Easy. It was Friday night, however, and I was not dieting, so poutine it was.

It all started when the lady next to us inquired about our accents. After some chit chat, we had asked where she was from. “My name is Patrica George and I'm Cree” she said. The first thought that came to mind at that point was me as a young boy encountering the concept of American Indians for the first time in the 1990 film Dancing With Wolves, you know the one with Kevin Costner? Since that time, I had always wanted to meet a First Nations person.

As Patricia kindly proceeded to tell us the story of her life, I listened intently with a burning curiosity to learn more about what it is like for a First Nations Person in the 21st century. The images that first developed in my mind as she spoke were that of a bucolic paradise. She spoke of the human interaction and connection that Cree people have on a day to day basis. They hunt, cook, share and live together by the atmospheric wonder that is the Great Whale River in far northern Quebec. It sounded like a real community lifestyle. As she continued to share, however, I stared deep into her hazelnut eyes and a saw a flicker of the emotional abuse she and her fellow tribesmen had experienced for generations. In a nut shell: the Majority has tried to crush the Minority, but the minority has not been crushed because it refuses to surrender.

Something really special that Patricia shared with us has remained with me. She told us how in 1990 the Quebec Government announced the construction of the Great Whale Hydroelectric project which was to divert eight large rivers and affect an ecosystem the size of France. Patricia's people felt that enough was enough. So, the James Bay Cree in the far north of Quebec joined with the Inuit Indians in the area to build a special canoe. In the spring of that same year a mixed team of both Cree and Inuit Indians paddled their ‘odeyake’ canoe from Whapmagoostui, Quebec, all the way to New York City. It was a momentous task: 2000km in just 5 weeks. By dogsled over frozen lakes, by dusty abandoned road, by rapid river. These brave descendants of some of the earliest North American people's came united: to protest the proposed Great Whale Hydroelectric project. And you wouldn't believe it. The project was cancelled. The $12.6 billion Great Whale project was ripped to shreds in front of the greedy eyes of Wall Street stock brokers. I bet Bernie Sanders cheered that day. The mammoth Odeyak canoe journey had not been in vain. The Cree and Inuit triumph sent a message of hope for all minority indigenous groups-not just the First Nation People in North America-but right throughout the globe. Were the Cree to have resisted singing their song and sharing their own special identity, an enormously ugly dam would have flooded ancient camping grounds with eons of history.

These are the kind of things that should be taught more in our schools. The triumph of the minority over the majority deserves a more prominent place on history's page.

So I'd like to say thanks to Patricia for taking the time to share her personal story with us! I hope that this blog entry encourages others to research more into this incredible modern-day David vs. Goliath story.

In 1990 Cree and Inuit from Northern Quebec travelled more than 2000 km over five weeks, by dogsled on the frozen bay, by road and by river, all the way to downtown Manhattan in a campaign against the proposed damming of the Great Whale River.

[googlemaps https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m18!1m12!1m3!1d4682045.890752687!2d-82.23627847922799!3d55.040496142576366!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x4da849066aa2522b%3A0x8cb0924092239541!2sWhapmagoostui%2C+QC+J0M%2C+Canada!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1460392401598&w=600&h=450]

The location of Great Whale River, the Cree community Patricia comes from.

(Image attained from: http://www.cbc.ca/news/aboriginal/northern-quebec-cree-community-celebrates-25th-anniversary-of-odeyak-voyage-1.3044078, accessed April 11, 2016.)

Tysons Corner

AdminApril 12, 2016

By kyuyoun0702

My house is located in McLean, which is about 10 minutes ride from Tysons Corner, one of the biggest shopping malls in Virginia. Whenever I have an appointment, I try to meet them in Tysons because that’s the most convenient place for me to meet my friends. My friends don’t really complain about this because Tysons offers such great entertainment and has excellent shops, restaurants and cafes.

I still remember the time I visited New York two years ago with my family. My dad kept on insisting that we go to one of the most renowned burger place in New York, which is Shake Shack Burger. We had to wait in line for more than 40 minutes just to get inside, and it indeed took tremendous effort to try to catch the workers calling our names. Even though the burger was good, we were a bit startled that we saw Shake Shack burger inside Tysons Corner. Plus, the longest we had to wait was 10 minutes, which is comparable with the one in New York. Tyson’s is such a great place, where it makes the unordinary ordinary.

Another favorite restaurant of mine is Panera Bread, where I can have to most amazing soup I’ve ever eaten. I am not much of a soup-lover as rest of my family is, and I was a bit disappointed when they took me to Panera Bread for lunch. I just complied to their choice (since my parents were the ones paying), and ordered the same thing they did, but thing in life never flow as expected. I finished the soup faster than any others, and even thought of getting another one. Even though Panera Bread is one of the most common restaurant in D.C., I just love the atmosphere and the kindness of one in Tyson. That’s why I always head to Panera Bread when my friends visit Tysons.

Tysons is always on sale. I don’t know why, but whenever I visit Tysons, they offer some kind of deal that I can never leave without purchasing something. My most recent visit was Friday the 8th, and my original purpose was to get a perfume for my friend’s birthday. However, I ended up getting a pink skirt, a blue top, and a new limited-edition Mac lip for myself. Even though I did spend a lot of money, I am satisfied with what I got.

Tyson’s is definitely on the list of what I’m going to miss the most about my exchange student life. Despite the fact that it was almost the only place I visited for entertainment (except when I was traveling), looking around Tysons was never mundane. There is no place like you, Tysons!

Spring has come!

AdminApril 5, 2016

By kyuyoun0702

Washington D.C. is renowned for its amazing cherry blossoms. Whenever I searched the term cherry blossom on Google, the results that appeared on the top usually had Lincoln Memorial on its background. Accordingly, the beautiful cherry blossoms were Japan’s gift to D.C. for the friendship they would be pursuing in the future, which unfortunately didn’t last so long! (gift given in 1912, but WWII broke out in 1942 with Japan and US on the other side). Total of 3000 cheery blossom trees were given to D.C., and this creates the beautiful landscape that represents D.C.’s spring.

In Korea, cherry blossom festivals are to be enjoyed with the significant others. When I walked past any street with cherry blossom trees, the only type of people I could observe were couples, a phenomenon that wasn’t very favorable to my mental health. However, in D.C., people who came for cherry blossoms tended to be families or friends, which made me relieved and more comfortable. (I went with my parents).

I spent 11 springs in Japan where cherry blossom trees originated from. Cherry blossoms were so commonplace that I didn’t really have any special sentiments or feelings for it. However, D.C.’s cherry blossoms were a bit different. The architectural styles of the buildings in the background were different from that of Japan, which created a brand new atmosphere that I could never perceive from Japan. Both atmospheres are so distinctive that I couldn’t believe that it were the cherry blossom trees.

It was a short but relaxing weekend. Even though it is a bit cold these days, I can smell the scent of spring 🙂

Cuba 202

AdminMarch 29, 2016

By jarrodgrabham12

Cuba is an immensely intriguing state. It exists as a living anachronism from the Cold War era, controversial, captivating, complex. Beyond the façade of the idyllic island paradise described in Cuba 101 is a whole new world. If you were to be so bold as to take a different way back to your hotel in Havana, for example, you would be quite startled. Dilapidated palace-like buildings. Hungry people. People with no or little pesos in their pockets to satisfy that very same hunger. The amount of times I was stopped and randomly asked for money was embarrassing. Almost embarrassing enough for someone to write a letter to el commandante Fidel.

Dear Fidel,

Many of your people are hungry and frustrated.

Thought I’d let you know,

Yours sincerely,

Hope.

Whilst 90 miles away fresh water comes at the effortless turn of a tap, here it must be sourced, boiled, chlorine added, filtered and finally poured into a mouth thirsty for change. What would I know about change in Cuba? I was only there for 15 days. True. However, in those 15 days I made an effort to speak to as many locals as I could. My method was simple. After I had been small talking to the person for a while, I would raise the controversial subject, if it was appropriate to do so. I would say, Obama? I would then clench my fist keeping only my thumb extended and then raise it firstly up, and then down. I was giving them the universal signage of two options, si o no, just as the Roman emperor’s once did to spare or end a weary gladiator’s life. They understood the gesture. I never got a downward pointing thumb. This is big stuff. Just think, for the past 56 years the US has imposed a trade embargo on the island state of Cuba as a result of Cuba becoming a communist state. Cuba fiercely opposed the US henceforth, allowing the Soviet Union to place ballistic missiles and military personnel on its shores. Now, in 2016, thumbs up here and there and everywhere.

Although it is difficult to know exactly what a thumbs up means, I do not believe they were necessarily saying yes to Obama and no to Castro. They were not saying yes to so called “liberal democratic capitalism” and no to Castro’s communism. You see Castro did manage to create a society with incredible healthcare.

I believe that when I said Obama and the thumbs went up, it was a silent but clear expression for change. The people of Cuba want change. It doesn’t have to be huge change. Just some change. They want to be able to travel freely throughout the world. They want free, unrestricted internet. They want to have the opportunity to be able to discuss politics on the streets without being afraid of being heard. Imagine if you peered into a class of third grader’s at a primary school and instead of finding small pre-adolescent bodies, adults ready to face the world were sitting awkwardly in those silly school seats, crowded and overgrown, yet restricted from leaving the classroom or progressing to the next grade. That’s how I perceive Cubans to feel. Many feel frustrated. They are ready now, Castro. Communism was a good school master in some ways. It has taught the people patience. They know how to queue for food, for rations, for buses, for supplies. They even now know how to queue for life. But now the queue is getting edgy. Frisky as a tom cat. Cuba has been caught in a time warp for too long. As Obama said, it is time to bury this relic of the Cold War.

In the year 1446 BC a certain man climbed steps of stubbornness to plead with Pharaoh Ramesses II regarding the future of the Children of Israel. In 2016, the same plea can still be heard: Castro, won’t you let your people go?

My Spring Break

AdminMarch 29, 2016

By kyuyoun0702

My spring break was magical, super, fantastic, spectacular, and all the other adjectives that describes the state of AWESOMENESS. Our family getaways haven’t happened in a while because our families lived apart, but now that we've all gathered in D.C., we thought it would be great to have a family trip together. Our break schedules conflicted as my spring break was the second week of March while that of my siblings was the third week. However, I didn't have an option because they were high-schoolers whose absences do remain on transcripts. I had to yield to my parents and had to miss few days of school. Got a lot of catch-ups to do.

But as I mentioned, my break was totally worth it. We got on a cruise for the first time, and it wasn't even an ordinary cruise. It was a DISNEY CRUISE! Hurray! Since the ship departed from Port Canaveral in Orlando, Florida, we had to get on a plane to get there. It was not much of a long trip, but I was already tired by the time I got there. Also, we had some problems with our luggage because it was missing from our planes pick-up lane. We first thought it was stolen, but after we talked with the Disney cruise staffs in the airport, we figured out that they transferred the luggage for us and that we would have it arrive in front of our rooms. Would have been nice if they had told us in prior, but it was nice of them to do that.

The cruise was a food heaven. There was no way I could get out of here without getting weight. First of all, everything was FREE. Well, not technically free because we paid beforehand, but we didn't have to pay everything we ordered anything. We were given a menu, and were free to choose from anything on it. On my first day, I was too excited I ordered three main menus, which were steak, lamb, and chicken. I had a very tough time that night because my inner system went wrong with food overdose. But the quality of the food was so amazing that I don’t regret tasting all of the menus I have ordered.

I loved how the cruise showed us musicals every night. Whenever we woke up and whenever we ran out of things to do by ourselves, there were always options available for us. One of them was the musical they showed every night, which is definitely a semi-Broadway quality. The theme differed for three nights, but I loved the one they showed on the first night. They mimicked an award showcase that Disney character had attended. I teared up a bit after the show.

The best part of my trip however, was the Disney Castaway island, which could only be accessed by the people who got on the cruise. The island was so beautiful and the ocean was transparent with a tint of light-blue. My dad, brother and I got on the bicycles to take a look at the island. Just as it was developed from an unknown island, the scenery was natural and full of freshness. I also said hi to Mr. Mini-crab who appeared from nowhere.

The lobby of the ship was always crowded because there were concerts going on all the time. My favorite was “Let it go” played in piano. I got sick every time I heard of that song, but the performance added a brand new taste to that cliche song. I loved it so much.

Even though it would be a far future for all of our family to go on a trip together ( need to save money - we are broke now), it was surely a great experience. Thank you GWU for giving me freedom for a week 🙂

Comment on North Korean crisis these days

AdminMarch 21, 2016

By kyuyoun0702

The first thing I saw on the news today was 21-years-old college student sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in North Korea. All he did was taking off the poster with political slogan on it, and attempting to bring it back to United States. One of the interns sitting next to me said “Bleh, I did it all the time when I was little.” This is an unbelievable incident for such trivial issue. I believe North Korea overacted a bit in response to the hardening relationship between itself and the international community. Are they going to use this as a threat to United States? If so, I am pretty sure its not gonna work.

Korean public's response to this issue were as following:

“United States is going to do something about it.”

“Why did he go there from the first place?”

“I wonder how it would feel to be released at 36 years old”

First, I disagree that United States would do something about it. It decided to take an unforgiving policy against North Korea, including the sanctions that recently passed in United Nations with the help of China. The vote for the sanction was unanimous in the Senate, which shows that United States is determined to pursue this policy. Arrest of one American student wouldn't make much difference, and even if they try to rescue him, it wouldn't compromise with North Korea beyond this single issue.

Secondly, I felt the exact same thing too. The world is such a beautiful place as it is composed of many countries with distinct characteristics and colorful cultures. There are so many places to visit that it would take a lifetime to travel all of them. But out of those countries, the choice he made was North Korea, and the outcome of his choice was more than unfortunate. I wondered how he even got there, but apparently, he was able to visit North Korea through a travel agency in China. This means he did put a lot of effort into his trip, and that he was expecting something out of it, which turned out to be hard labor!

Lastly, I felt the same thing too. During his press conference, he couldn't resist his emotion and cried. He couldn't walk properly because the reality was so harsh to be accepted. He said he needed to take care of his siblings, and that he can’t be detained in North Korea for them. He asked for pardon as he is a human being who can make a mistake. I certainly do agree with him. He is young and curious, and even though his action turned out to be unacceptable by the people in North Korea, they could have just considered this as a mere mistake. Would he have enough courage to start over his life from 36 years old? Are all his young days going to evaporate at an unfamiliar, alien country?

Joon Oh, an UN Ambassador from South Korea recently made an impressive statement in United Nations. In his impromptu speech, Mr. Oh, in Korean, said “As an individual with the same racial root, I urge you to stop what you’re doing.” It is time for North Korea to take another diplomatic strategy for itself, as the future ahead is pretty dark in front of them.

New York City

AdminMarch 21, 2016

By kyuyoun0702

Our trip to NY was impromptu. My friend and I just talked about going to a ‘trip’ somewhere, but we never actually took action. Our lives were so busy with heavy workload and exhausting schedules. Our desire for an ‘escape-from-reality’ grew to the extent that our lazy selves were able to put together a trip plan. We thought spring break would be an excellent time for us to go to a trip, and would also be the only time our trip would work out. A week before our departure, we got a megabus ticket for ourselves and were set to go.

But the problem was that purchasing megabits tickets were all that we did. We didn’t do anything afterwards. Expensive hotel prices demotivated us to reserve a room, and we kept on saying “later, later.” But “later” came pretty soon, much sooner than expected. Hotel prices soared up high, and we had no choice but to go to a spa to spend a night. Spa was not that cheap either; it was about $42 a person, which would almost afford us a decent steak. However, almost everything in New York was overpriced. But we didn’t have any option! “When in New York, do as the New Yorkers do.”

We weren’t tired at all Even after the lengthy five hours bus ride. After we got off the bus, we lifted our heads and counted how many buildings were just in front of us. Because we’ve been in D.C. for pretty long time, we couldn’t believe we were in NY. Skyscrapers were everywhere, and the streets were overcrowded with people. There were all kinds of people with different ethnicities, fashion, hairstyle etc. Even though this is my fourth time in NY, the special atmosphere in NY always felt new to me.

After we quickly finished our lunch at Korean Town, We went from one shop to another just like grasshoppers in order to hunt for good deals. I got one sweater from UNIQLO and an eco-bag (which used to cost $29 but then $5). Time flew as we shopped and it was already getting dark. Figuring out that the distance between our current location and Times Square was pretty walkable, we decided to walk to Times Square while observing the street musicians, artists and even the photo-rip-offs (There happens to be people dressed up as popular characters like Winnie the Pooh, Micky Mouse etc. They abruptly pose with us when we take pictures, and ask for money.)

Times Square was beautiful as always. Even though the place was such a brouhaha, we still managed to take pictures with a decent background.

The reason that we look so red is that the commercial up on the screen was mainly red. Our photo quality really depends on what commercial they are showing hahaha.

We also went to the Brooklyn Bridge, the much renowned photo spot. The weather was not that great, I think the scenery itself matches well with the gloomy weather, doesn’t it?

My experience up on the Brooklyn Bridge was SO AMAZING. NYC during the night is so beautiful that all of its other flaws could be neglected (The bridge is totally unreconstructed. I was so scared I would fall off but oh well).

My trip to New York was short, but it made me realize how different US could be depending on the states. Even though Korea does have distinct characteristics depending on the district, I could find a lot of similarities with my own, Seoul. However, NY was nothing like DC. The color of the city, buildings, the people - there were almost no commonality except the fact that they spoke English. I truly admire how the central government operates well enough to gather the interests of these different states and maintain its status as one country.

Just Ordinary Days

AdminMarch 8, 2016

By kyuyoun0702

Quality of my life will improve dramatically after this week - the lengthy mid-term exam is finally coming to an end. Even though I can’t say I dedicated my whole life to studying, midterm was always on my mind, and I couldn’t dare to attempt something interesting. Even though my blog post had been pretty mundane these couple of weeks, please excuse me and I promise I will come back next week with more interesting!! exchange-student-like!! I-am-so-happy!!!! posts 🙂 (ESPECIALLY because I am going to NY during the weekend and Bahamas the following week!!!!!!!!!)

One of the biggest highlight this week was receiving free M&M chocolate at Capitol South station!!!! (yes really). Apparently it was their 75th anniversary, and they were celebrating it by giving out free chocolates. It was 9AM in the morning, and my sleepy eyes retained some energy as cute M&M characters greeted me on the top of the elevator. Not only did they brighten my day, but they also bestowed me the blessed chocolate. I, a very secular being, tried to reject their kind offer, thinking that they would rip the money off of me, but they gave me the chocolate and waved their hands. Wow. A free chocolate! Even though I didn’t look so great that day, I took more than 10 selfies to honor the blissful 75th anniversary of M&Ms. Happy birthday M&M! I will try to buy more of your products from now on!

During the weekend, my father invited me over near his office to have a good lunch together. It was a buffet-style lunch and we ate way beyond our own capacities. So, we decided to take a walk near the monument. The weather was not so great, but it was warm enough for us to stay out for more than an hour, which hasn’t happened for a while.

As we walked past the Lincoln memorial, we arrived at World War II memorial. The memorial was not only huge in size, but its design and the atmosphere were compelling enough for me to perceive the dedication and enthusiasm of the ones who fought in the war. The gloomy weather ironically contributed to the memorial looking more grand and meaningful.

My sister and I went to Le Pain Quotidian to “study.” I was wondering why the name of the cafe was familiar, and I soon figured out that its because the Yonsei student who came to GWU few years ago recommended this cafe on the Study Abroad Program review. I read the review and ordered the croissant and chocolate bread with much renowned “hazelnut spread.” Hazelnut spread was so amazing that it felt as if I was eating the bread just to enjoy the spread. For drinks, we each ordered Iced Americano and Iced Green Tea. Iced Americano was pretty satisfactory, but my sister didn’t like her green tea. She put in milk, honey, and syrup in order to make it taste better, but it only got worse. But she still finished it! Good for her!

Gotta go back to study. I can’t wait till my trip to NYC and Bahamas!!!!